Senate Passes Y2K Damage-Capping Bill

The U.S. Senate late yesterday voted in favor of a bill that essentially would give businesses 90 days to fix Y2K problems before lawsuits could be filed.

The Y2K Act, primarily sponsored by Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), also calls for mediation to allow both sides to come to terms. The bill also seeks to limit punitive damages in Y2K lawsuits, impose tougher restrictions on class-action lawsuits, and set rules that stipulate defendants will only be liable for their share of actual damages in a Y2K suit.

Just hours before the successful Senate vote of 81 to 18, the bill (H.R. 775) was approved by Congress by an overwhelming 404 to 24 majority of legislators. The next step is to present the bill to the White House for consideration by President Clinton, who is expected to swiftly sign it into law.

The White House initially had threatened to veto the bill, saying it put too many restrictions on consumers who may want to file lawsuits against companies responsible for Y2K damages. However, the powerful high-technology lobby and industry groups such as the Information Technology Association of America (ITAA), Arlington, Va., which represents more than 11,000 U.S. IT companies, pressured legislators to seriously consider the initiative.

The ITAA has worked with more than 100 other industry groups and companies as members of the Y2K Coalition to lobby in support of the bill and other impending Y2K legislation. The group earlier this week called the passage of the bill one of its top legislative priorities for 1999.

"We are pleased that the White House has finally joined Congress to support a bill that emphasizes remediation over litigation, dispute resolution over pitched court battles, and rational process over costly, frivolous lawsuits, " said ITAA President Harris Miller in a statement.

SHARE THIS ARTICLE

More Channel Programs